Infant Jesus Chruch Bangalore

On the 29th day of June, Most Rev. Dr S. Lourduswami, the Secretary of Sacred Congregation from Rome, for the people’s Evangelization, came down and laid the foundation of the Infant Jesus Church in a massive gathering of God’s followers and people of Bangalore. 

After many years of the making, this beautiful structure was inaugurated by the Archbishop of the then Bangalore, Most Rev. Dr. Bernard Moras, Most Rev. Dr. Pedro Lopez Quintana, Most Rev. Dr. Ignatius Pinto and by the Archdiocese of Bangalore- Archbishop Emeritus,

Architects of the Thomas Associates created a splendid design for the church hall, which looks like a fan. With a capacity to accommodate, of about, 2500 people inside and nine faces and openings all around the church.

The podium is a little above than the level of the aisle with ramps on the both sides and steps to climb. This architecture is so unique that no matter where people are sitting, they will feel that the altar is facing them, irrespective of how far they are from it.

The inaccessibility of pastoral care from the sacred Bangalore’s Heart Parish, which extended to many parts like the now Viveknagar (then Sonyanahalli) in the mid-sixties, was deeply observed by Rev. Fr. Paul Kinatukara. 

He was the parish priest of one of the most famous churches then, The Sacred Heart Church. He realized the far-off distance from god’s shadow here and felt the need to have a separate parish for the regions around Sonyahalli.

A well- maintained garden of Roses from where every week, lakhs of beautiful roses were exported, attracted the priest immediately and he thought of buying the land but since it was beneficial for the economy, he was skeptical about the idea. 

However, a mysterious power drove him to go for the land and he made up his mind to do so. On suggestion, he began to pray.  Since then, with every passing day, he bowed to the Infant Jesus of Prague for about two months and his prayers were answered immediately. In such short span of time, he was able to buy the land at a very cheap cost.

A shrine was built on the land in 1969 on 18th day of April with the foundation laid by the then Archbishop of Bangalore- Most Rev. Dr S. Lourduswami; and with the first parish priest as Rev. Fr. L. Peter in 1971. He celebrated the success by buying the Statue of the Infant Jesus from the Sacred Heart Church and placed it in an old tent under the name ‘Tent Church’ for 8 long years.

Then in 1972, the then Archbishop of Bangalore, Most Rev. Dr.P.Arokiaswamy erected a new parish. After two years from here, the local authorities denied the built up for the new church saying that they need approval form the Bangalore Development Authority. 

Five years of struggle and determination led to the announcement by Fr.Peter that the plan has been approved with a full waiver of the development charges that was around half a lakh. This happened On 26th October 1977.

Finally in 1979, the Secretary of Sacred Congregation, Most Rev. Dr S. Lourduswami, came down from Rome and laid the foundation of Infant Jesus Church in Bangalore. This church was inaugurated on 22 June 1989 adjacent to the shrine.

Visit the website - https://www.infantjesusmangalore.net/index.html